I'm mean because I care
by Toonfanatic5
Summary: Prequel to The Only One Who Noticed. A story of Gajeel and Levy's past. She never knew it but Gajeel had always cared about her. He just had a different way of showing it. AU


_**A/N: **_**Okay, so I have received a few requests asking me to write about Gajeel and Levy's history. I'm quite flattered I must say. **

**Dedicated to: **

**ironandpen **

**Anonymous**

**Warning:**** Story consists of dark themes of abuse.**

**So without further ado, I present to you the prequel of ****The only one who noticed**

"No! Please! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" A loud crash interrupted the females voice.

"How dare you? HOW FUCKING DARE YOU?" a man screamed.

The little boy who had been awake for some time now, swung his legs over his bed and padded his way towards the living room. He hid himself behind the wall and peeked into the room. He saw his mother sprawled over the now broken coffee table. Blood poured from where the sharp glass pieces were wedged into her arms.

His father was towering over her, fists clenched. He exhaled noisily through his nose, expressing his anger towards his wife.

"I-I'm sorry..." she whimpered.

"Sorry doesn't count for shit!" his hand shot towards the woman and he roughly hauled her up by her nightshirt. "When I come home late at night, I expect my food to be warmed up and set on the table by the time I walk through the door. I want to come in and immediately sit down to eat because I am fucking starving!" he screamed in her face, "And you have the nerve to tell me you fell asleep because you were tired? Tired of what! I'M the one who slaves away so YOU can take care of the home!"

"I-I'm really s-sorry. I-I had b-been on my feet a-all d-day running your e-errands a-a-and I-"

"Oh, for fuck's sake! STOP STAMMERING YOU BLOODY WOMAN!" he yelled as he punched her face. The woman gave a soft squeak and bit down on her bottom lip, trying not to cry over the throbbing pain. "I'm sorry, it won't happen again," she whispered, not trusting her voice to speak louder.

"It better not, or I'll-"

"Mommy? Daddy?"

The man stopped and turned his gaze towards the little boy now standing by the room's entrance. The man smiled and released his grip on his wife. He then raced towards his son and hoisted him in the air.

"Gajeel!" he cried as he brought the boy in for a hug, "What are you doing out of bed? Did mommy wake you up?"

The boy gave a nod as he wrapped his arms around his father's neck.

"Well, I suppose that's one thing mommy did right today. I haven't seen you all day and I really missed you. Did you miss me?"

The raven haired boy grinned and gave his father a squeeze.

"Ah, that's my boy! You want to stay up with your old man a little longer? You can eat a cookie whilst I eat my supper."

"Gihihi," the boy laughed in delight.

"Aries, be a dear and fetch my dinner as well as a cookie for Gajeel."

"I'm sorry but it's a bit late to be giving him sweets and-"

Another fist collided with her face, forcing her to stumble back. She clutched onto where he had hit her and stared at him with doleful eyes.

"I asked to be fed with food, not your bullshit." The dark haired man hissed.

"I'm sorry. I'll get right to it, dear." The pinkette smiled before dashing towards the kitchen.

"Tch, I'm glad you're not a girl, Gajeel," his father grunted. The boy looked at his father with curiosity, the look in his eye asking 'why'? "They are weak creatures," his father continued, "That is why males are here. We protect them, watch over them and put them in their place."

A loud 'ding' came from the kitchen, putting a smile on the man's face. "Well, enough about that," he grinned, "Let's go eat!"

Gajeel kicked his dangling legs to and fro as he stared at his mother intently. Her cheek was swollen and was coloured in with a dark purple. He wanted to reach up and poke it but she Aries gently pushed his hand down and told him to finish his cereal.

"Is it sore?" he asked her.

His mother gave him a gentle smile, "A little bit."

"Why does daddy hurt you?"

"I'm sorry, Gajeel-kun. It may seem a bit funny but this is how daddy shows that he loves mommy."

The boy slurped the cereal on his spoon, his eyes not leaving his mother. He looked at her arms wrapped in bandages.

"Daddy must love you lots! Mommy looks like a mummy," he grinned.

The pinkette giggled, "Yes, mommy looks like a mummy. I'm sorry I hope it doesn't scare you."

"I'm not scared of anything! No one messes with me!"

"That's my boy!" roared his father, walking into the kitchen. His hands fiddled with his tie as he bent down to give his wife and son a kiss.

"Good morning, Metalicana." Aries greeted.

"I'll be taking Gajeel to school today." He stated, ruffling his son's hair. "You ready, my dragon boy?"

Gajeel gulped down the last of his breakfast before nodding. He then jumped off the chair and raced to go grab his backpack.

He seated himself at his usual seat at the back of the class. His fellow classmates dared not sit near him. They were afraid of Gajeel. His red eyes freaked them out and the unusual strength this 6 year old boy possessed had them cowering in fear. In fact, the children of Fairy Land had to check underneath their beds and inside their closets every night, not for the Boogeyman but for Gajeel.

The raven haired boy didn't care. He had grown accustomed to their ways. When he first attended this nursery school, he tried being friendly. He wanted to make friends but everyone always ran away from him. Even when he tried to crack a smile, he looked like a psycho.

"Okay class, we have a new student joining us today," said their teacher, Mrs Goodhead, "You re all going to be nice to her, right?"

"Yes, Mrs Goodhead," the class chorused

"Good," the elderly lady beamed. She then turned towards the door and motioned for student to come in. A tiny girl shuffled her way towards the teacher. Her head was bent down shyly and her blue hair covered her face. Mrs Goodhead placed her hands firmly onto the child's shoulders as she made her face the class. The teacher gave her a gentle squeeze to comfort the nervous girl.

"This is Levy McGarden," the woman introduced.

"Hi Levy," came a chorus of voices.

The girl looked up and gave a bright smile.

"You can sit anywhere you like, Levy," the teacher beamed, giving her a gentle nudge.

"Thank you ma'am," the girl beamed. Her brown eyes then scanned the room for a suitable place. There were many open seats available but the tables at the back seemed more appealing. She then happily skipped to the back of the class, ignoring the fearful glances the class was giving her.

She stood next to Gajeel and beamed at him. "May I sit here?" she asked politely, motioning to the seat next to him.

The boy stared at her in surprise. Was she not afraid of him? Did he not intimidate her? He gave a grunt and nodded his head. She grinned at him, allowing him to see the gap between her teeth. She then plonked onto her new seat and stuck out her hand.

"I'm Levy. What's your name?"

"G-Gajeel," he replied awkwardly.

"Hi Gajeel! Let's be friends, okay?" she smiled again. She then opened up her bag and took out a book. She placed it on her lap so that the teacher wouldn't see it and then begun to read.

Gajeel was still gawking at the girl. He took in her appearance. She was smaller than anyone else in the class. She looked fragile and weak. She looked like someone you wanted to watch over and protect. She seemed innocent, friendly and sweet. And she was sitting next to him. Sitting next to someone who was her total opposite. He looked tough, scary and seemed far from friendly.

It was break time and everyone was running around outside screaming, laughing and playing. Gajeel had perched himself on a large dome made with painted steel pipes. He claimed it as his little throne so no one dared to climb on it when he was around. His throne was high enough to give him an overall view of the playground. He had his gaze fixed on the little blue haired girl, her nose buried in a book. She occasionally would extended her arm and feel for her lunch. She would then slowly bring the food towards her mouth and chew it, all without her eyes leaving the book.

The girl then hopped off her seat and began walking whilst still reading. Gajeel watched her with curiosity. She didn't seem to know what was going on around her. It made him wonder how she could be so glued to a book when she should be running around, making friends and having fun.

She began to walk towards a group of boys who were playing 'stingers'. The boy whose turn it was to injure his friends with a tennis ball, spotted the bluenette wandering aimlessly into their playing field. He grinned mischievously as his grip around the ball tightened and he pulled his hand back.

Gajeel jumped off the dome and raced towards the oblivious girl. The boy tossed the ball at her but before it could touch her, Gajeel shielded the girl with his body. The tennis ball smacked him on the back before bouncing away. He whipped his head back to glare at the culprit.

The boy gulped and backed away slowly. "I'm sorry Gajeel. P-P-Please don't kill me," he whimpered before running off in the opposite direction. The rest of the group followed his example and scattered themselves across the playground. Gajeel was about to run after them when a voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Gajeel?" spoke Levy, "What happened? Are you okay?"

The raven haired boy grunted. "You could'a gotten hit by a ball. Watch where you're going."

Levy looked up at him and beamed. She then threw her arms around him and gave him a hug.

"Thank you Gajeel-kun!" she said.

Before the awkward boy could respond, the bell rang and Mrs Goodhead called for her class to return inside. Levy pulled away from her hug and instead grabbed Gajeel's hand instead.

"Let's go, Gajeel-kun!" she smiled, pulling the boy's hand as she skipped towards class.

The boy was so stunned at the unfamiliar attention he was receiving from a fellow classmate that he didn't resist the girl's gentle tugs as she led him to his seat.

Once he sat down, he turned to look at Levy again. He wasn't surprised to see her head down and all her attention focused on a book once more. He could hear their teacher talking about what activities they were going to do but he tuned out the woman's voice. Instead he continued to stare at Levy, only focusing on her. He shifted his gaze towards her blue hair. It was something that really distinguished her from everyone else. He cocked his head to the side, wandering what it felt like.

Then without realising what he was doing, he reached a hand out to a stray strand. His fingers caressed it gently and his eyes widened as felt the softness of her hair. Levy didn't seem to be aware of his touch and it somewhat annoyed him. He wanted some attention too!

"_They are weak creatures,"_ his father's voice popped into his head, _"That is why males are here. We protect them, watch over them and put them in their place."_

Was that why he was watching over her and protected her from harm's way? Is this how it should be done?

"_It may seem a bit funny but this is how daddy shows that he loves mommy." _

Gajeel grinned. He understood now. This is how everyone must show that they care for one another. After all, he was very happy at home. You would always hear scary stories of how parents don't love each other anymore and then they go far away from each other. Daddy would never do that to mommy. He loved her very much and he showed to her every day.

And today he made a new friend that he never wanted to lose. She was going to be with him forever and he would show how much he liked her.

His little hand gripped tightly onto her hair and with all the strength he could muster, he began to pull...

_**A/N:**_** I'm thinking I'll make this a two/three shot. I don't know, I'll see.**

**I wasn't planning on making Aries the mother but because I kept writing "I'm sorry," in her dialog, I figured I may as well do it. Anyway, tell me what you think.**


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